Saturday, January 13, 2007

Spinach Bacon Salad

Shmoo has this Monday off, so it's time for another Mommy Lunch!

Those of you who read the summertime posts know I pack my lunches in this stainless steel container, which I strongly recommend for holding big veggie and fruit salads like the kind I usually have for lunch.

During the cold winter months I still make lots of salads but add creamier dressings and richer toppings to make them a bit more filling. Today it's a Spinach Bacon Salad: baby spinach, romaine, radicchio, and lots and lots of sliced fresh mushrooms, with a stack of friedFakin' Bacon and a Creamy Shallot Dijon Dressing to toss on at lunchtime.

Citrus fruits are at their peak in the winter, but eating plain oranges is getting a little boring. Today I jazzed them up by making Oranges with Raspberry Sauce and Ginger, packed in a scooped out orange bowl.

On the side are some pistachios, and my happy glass jar is filled with Very Veggie Juice.

Verdict: I had never tried Fakin' Bacon before, although I love fried tempeh. These smoky strips were fantastic, easy to prepare and great on a spinach salad.

Just before taking this picture my inner Cooking Muse told me to sprinkle pickled ginger on the top of my orange salad. At first I was extremely doubtful ("Pickled ginger on oranges? Are you sure?" "Yes! Yes! You must add pickled ginger!"). Turns out it was perfect -- exactly what the salad needed to make it sing. 5 stars.

21 comments:

that lunch container looks great -- i've been looking to replace my plastic lock'n'lock boxes. can you use just one of the dishes at a time, or do you always need to use them bundled? or they have their own lids, or is the top dish the lid for the bottom? thanks!

As soon as the page loaded, my reaction was YUUUMMM!! That looks so good! So colorful-I am a sucker for vibrant colors-natural of course. I usually buy the Lightlife Smartbacon and nuke it. It is like salty cardboard, but still better than real bacon in my opinion. I have only seen the kind you used at the brand website. Seems like it could be good, or at least worth a try!

Hooray! I found your site last week and just received my cookbook yesterday. I'm so happy you're still bloggin after your book is finished. I ordered one of those tiffins for myself and one for my mom-she will LOVE it. Thanks so much for all your fabulous ideas!